“Having more than one weapon is key to our success,” said McLaughlin, a Florida commit. “Parker scores in many different ways. Having her by my side relieves pressure off me.”

The Wildcats’ offense struggled to hit shots consistently, especially in the first half, and shot 38 percent. Meanwhile, Homestead shot 46 percent and 50 percent from behind the arc.

It was evident from the start that Homestead’s offense was on another level, as the team jumped out to leads of 7-0, 15-5 and 21-14 before the end of the first quarter.

The Wildcats (10-4) started the second quarter on a 6-0 run to cut the deficit to one, but McLaughlin scored 16 in the second quarter and Homestead (15-0) took a 42-32 lead into the half. Homestead hit six 3-pointers in the first half.

The Wildcats scored the first four points of the second half to cut the deficit to six, but Homestead immediately countered with a 7-0 run. Lawrence North didn’t pose a serious threat the rest of the way.

“We wanted to go into the game with a focus of guarding the 3-point line,” Lawrence North coach Chris Giffin said. “McLaughlin and Parker played outstanding. The majority of the shots they made were tough shots. It was more good offense versus bad defense. They were the superior team tonight and unbelievably efficient offensively.”

Homestead coach Rod Parker credited Lawrence North for their offensive production. The Spartans came into the game allowing an average of 40 points per game, a total the Wildcats neared in the first half.

“I thought they shot the ball very well today,” Parker said. “Destiny (Perkins) is a great point guard. She really opens things up for them. I was impressed with the number of shooters they had tonight that stepped up and made big shots to keep them in the game.”

Perkins finished with a team-high 18 points. Trinity Brady added 11 and Mya Parker scored nine. The team had seven assists on 22 field goals.

“I thought we had a little bit too much one-on-one (offensively),” Giffin said. “We didn’t move the ball and have as much penetration as we’d like. We need to clean that up in a hurry prior to playing Pike on Thursday.”